Trump to Announce His Cuba Policy on June 16th

Trump when he campaigned in Miami, promising to reverse Obama’s policy on Cuba.

HAVANA TIMES — US President Donald Trump will come to Miami next Friday to announce the changes his administration has for US policy toward Cuba, a source familiar with the President’s plans told the Miami Herald.

The location of the event has not been fixed yet. But the fact that the trip has already been planned indicates that the policy towards Cuba, which has been under study for several months, will be finalized soon.

The decision to disclose that policy in Miami suggests it will please hard-liner Cuban exiles whose support Trump considered significant to win Florida as well as to win the presidency, El Nuevo Herald reports.

Trump is preparing to at least make some of Obama’s changes more difficult, including restricting business with the Cuban armed forces [which are the leading hotel owners] and any travel of US citizens that may seem like tourism in some way, which would threaten some or all of the people-to-people categories allowed by the previous administration.

Such changes have been backed by Florida Senator Marco Rubio and Miami Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart, the only two local Congressional members who backed Trump. They have subsequently used their leverage to lobby the issue with their administration. Rubio in particular has been working very closely with the White House and the National Security Council regarding the upcoming changes.

The White House, which has not had major legislative victories so far, has tried to keep its promises to its political support base through executive measures. Trump’s executive orders and political directives have given him the opportunity to leave the confines of Washington to feel the support of his supporters.

What's your opinion?

curt9954

If Trump reinstates the travel ban to Cuba it won’t make any difference to me. I’ll just fly through Cancun and Cuban officials will not stamp my passport. I proudly broke the law whe Bush Jr was president and I will break it under trump con gusto! Trump or no Trump, I’m going to the Havana Jazz festival in January.

Carlyle MacDuff

There is nothing quite like enjoying your freedom curt9954. How Cubans will envy you.

Dan

Wait – Cubans can travel to the US. Americans are the ones with the restrictions, which might get more severe. So who has the “freedom” ?

Carlyle MacDuff

I have to agree with you Dan that most of your fellow countrymen meekly accepted limitation upon travel and I too regard that as a restriction upon freedom. But also as you probably know, those of initiative found ways of negotiating around the US travel restrictions to Cuba, travelling either through Canada or Mexico.
As I wrote -with a degree of astonishment – SIXTY MILLION AMERICANS VOTED FOR DONALD TRUMP(F).
But you will also read in these pages in a contribution I made within the last 24 hours, the definitions of ‘freedom’ and of ‘liberty’. Those are denied to Cubans by the Castro regime. My interests are much more for the people of Cuba than for the peculiarities of the US.
My response to curt9954 remains.

Marcia Lyon

God Dammed this hateful president………I’m an American citizen and I am disgusted by this man who is a bully, and an immature child.

Carlyle MacDuff

You folks Marcia as Americans can at least do something about Trump(f) – even if you have to wait three and one half years. The rest of us can only watch with a mixture of disbelief and amazement a man who received votes from 60 million Americans. Just think about that, SIXTY MILLION AMERICANS VOTED FOR HIM!

Moses Patterson

That scares me too. When I am in the market or even sitting in a movie theater, I look over at the guy next to me and worry…”Did this guy vote for Trump?”

Moses Patterson

If China had any real interest in Cuba, they would have already invested heavily as they have done elsewhere in Latin America and Africa. Nothing that Trump will or will not do prevents Sino-Cuban relations.

Dave Chambers

Trump comes to Florida every weekend to golf on America’s dime (+$1 million actually).. I doubt that this crazy lunatic bully will have anything positive to say for Cuba…Watch for a classic arrogant “America is the Greatest” attitude.. I doubt that Cuba will be in a hurry to return to any relationship that resembles the one that they turfed out back in 1959.. Cubans are exceptionally good diplomats..it will be a goodly time before we hear a response to whatever crackpot ideas that Trump offers up. Either way… Trump seems to change his mind and do 180 degree reversals on his proposals fairly quickly after he makes announcements… So whatever he says… IT may change…

Moses Patterson

The Castros should have respected Obama more and responded to his gestures of normalizing relations.

bjmack

Absolutely correct, Moses! Amazing how inept these people are. The only state this would have played better would have been Florida but Castro hung Obama out to dry. Not a very smart move and typical for a system that has major flaws.

Raul

ANYTHING that undoes Obama crapola is welcome.

Carlyle MacDuff

The Castro regime is already more than $25 billion in debt to China.

Sky

From the diplomat.com
“Contrary to what some experts think, Trump can become a catalyst for the process of change that is already happening in Cuba. The economic and political reality of the island in the current context suggests that Donald Trump could have a more favorable position to lift the embargo once Raul Castro leaves power in 2018. Of course, it is clear that if this happened, it would be through economic interests rather than political conviction. For many, this looks like an improbable outcome of a contest in which Donald Trump is playing poker, and Raul Castro is playing dominoes.
Trump, as a businessman, knows that Cuba is a market with exceptional natural conditions, only 90 miles from the U.S., located in the heart of the Caribbean, with highly trained human resources and politically a gateway to Latin America. Making predictions about what Trump’s policy toward Cuba will be is a big risk, his unpredictable style and aggressive negotiating tactics inject a great deal of uncertainty into the future of the U.S.-Cuba thaw. However, there is much at stake. It is a strategic issue, as currently the relationship between the two countries moves a market of $9 billion on both sides of the Florida Straits, in remittances, telecommunications, travel, tourism and food and medicine sales. More than 65 percent of this is on the U.S. side, a fact that Cuban official statistics do not reflect. So I wonder, if Trump wants a solid relationship with Russia, why not with Cuba? Everyone can take their own view.”

Moses Patterson

You are ascribing rationality to Trump’s decision-making. You also give too much value to the economic reasons for the US to deal with Cuba. Finally, keep this in mind, Russia has nukes. Cuba doesn’t.